This morning I received an offer from the British Institute of Padova. 1,300 Euro monthly. 1. No EU passport (American) 2. Though it is easy to work illegally, can one make it on 1,300 Euros per month in a city like Padova.

If you have any information about the school, pro or con, please share!

It is not easy to work illegally these days - as of Jan 2009. Americans get only 90 days inside the entire Schengen zone (google it for a list of member countries) and then you have to leave for 90 days - the border run option is no longer a fix.

You are obviously unlikely to get caught entering the zone (though you may well be asked for proof of a round trip ticket - this is happening more often) and unless you're unlucky you may not get caught while you're in the country teaching (though a traffic accident, problem with landlord, etc. can get you caught).

But when you leave, the passport control is very likely to quiz you about why you've overstayed. The penalty is a 10-year ban on your entering the zone at all.

This may sound unfair (I would agree) but it is designed to eliminate the border hop option and really keep illegal non-EU workers OUT.

Actually I think if we were to overstay on an American Visa in the US, the penalty would be either barred from the US for 3years or 10 years (visapro.com). So it makes the EU's 10 years seem more in line with others' rules, internationally speaking.

John casually says it's easy to work illegally, and I have to think that perhaps this is a contributing factor to the s hite pay and conditions that we eu citizens face.

Thank you for your prompt replies. I am aware of your sentiments toward working illegally in the EU and the consequences. Many postings, mostly from Brits, innundate these forums concerning illegals working in Europe.

My real question is can one really live on such a meagre salary in an affluent Northern Italian city such as Padova? I plan on telephoning the manager who offered me the position about my concerns.

Well a few years ago I lived in the centre of Milan and was earning about 1100€-. My rent was 500€- and so I had enough to spend on food, going out, but not enough for saving and holidays. This was a good few years ago, though. Id imagine that your biggest drain would be rent. Also have you considered what you will do for health insurance, as a possible illegal you will not be automatically covered in the way I was, and you'll be fked if anything goes wrong.

You'll have to excuse us cynics here. Just imagine yourself a wetback gardener in El Paso or somewhere and you'll get the idea. As someone who went to the tax office yesterday to get a form to register for VAT (a P.Iva) I'm feeling more cynical than most as €60 gross an hour (if I'm lucky, but it could be 80.....) will turn out €40 nett, or less. Plus I have to provide a whole lot of documentation (my rental contract etc etc.)

I'd add that I certainly don't save here, and I'm past paying for student loans. I wouldn't work in the US illegally either, but I'm too old to worry about things like that. Maybe your employer will help with the visa, but I'd always wonder why, so that should be your question, not the rate of pay. Not to say that a US accent isn't needed here sometimes, but most employers are lazy, have weak admin support and normally take the line of least resistance!